Sleep Tips for Surviving Vegas Market

It’s that time of year again! Our twice-a-year furniture market extravaganza in fabulous Las Vegas. For those of us in the bedding industry: this means talking all about the latest in sleep products and then not sleeping at all.

It can be exhausting, but there are a few things you can do to make it easier. Here’s how to prep your sleep for Vegas market.

Vegas Sleep Survival Guide

If you’re already short on sleep, my advice is simple: sleep more now (like, seriously, right now).

Take naps.

Go to bed earlier.

Sleep in.

You don’t want to pile sleep deprivation on sleep deprivation: one study showed those running on less than 6 hours of sleep showed the same levels of cognitive dysfunction than those who pulled two back-to-back all nighters. So tired folks: get some sleep before your wheeling and dealing in Vegas. Your brain (and company) will thank you.

If your body is well rested, check out my recommended schedule below.

East Coasters/Flatlanders

Vegas is three time zones away.

Give yourself three days to adjust, pushing your bedtime and wake up an hour later each night.

For example: if you’re flying in on Friday, start adjusting Tuesday night. Instead of going to bed from 10:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. you would try to go to bed from 11:30 p.m. - 7:30 a.m.

Each day, keep pushing your bedtime and wake up times back by a half-hour to an hour without sacrificing the duration of your sleep (getting ENOUGH sleep takes priority in this case to a later bedtime).

Central time zone

Vegas is two time zones away.

Give yourself two days to adjust, pushing your bedtime and wake up an hour later each night.

For example: you’re flying in on Friday, so start adjusting Wednesday night. Instead of going to bed from 10:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m., you would try to go to bed at 11:30 p.m. - 7:30 a.m.

The next night, push your bedtime and wake up times back another hour without sacrificing the duration of your sleep (getting ENOUGH sleep takes priority in this case to a later bedtime).

Mountain timezone

Vegas is one time zone away.

Lucky you! You only have to adjust one hour.

The night before you leave, try to go to bed and wake up an hour later than usual.

BE SURE TO PACK:

Eye mask

Ear plugs (the city never sleeps!)

Anything that is part of your home bedtime routine: reading a book, a magazine, essential oil, your usual pajamas or lack thereof. Whatever you can do to keep a consistent thread between home and travel will benefit your sleep.

You probably won’t be getting MORE sleep than usual in Vegas so it’s very important to protect the sleep you do get with a few tools for light-blocking and noise-blocking.

AND NOW, SOME SLEEP SCIENCE:

Nerd out with me briefly here as we talk about dolphins. Yes, dolphins.

So dolphins have this cool ability to put half of their brain to sleep while the other half stays awake. This is thought to be so they can stay alert and ward off predators and not drown in the ocean, that sort of thing. It’s called unihemispheric sleep. There’s your six-point word for the day.

Anyway, humans can’t do this (giant bummer, I know). BUT. Brain scans have shown that we exhibit a sort of baby version of this unihemispheric sleep: in that there’s a little more activity and alertness in half of our brain when we’re sleeping in a new place. Tracking?

So when you sleep in the hotel on the first night, you’re kiiind of like a dolphin in that half your brain is sleeping a little lighter to watch out for a rogue zipliner who might come crashing through your window (which isn’t actually going to happen, but your ancestors had to go through a lot, OK?). So, to counteract all of these survivalist instincts of ours, an eye mask and ear plugs will help that lively half of your brain shut down a little more, and help you sleep better on the first night in Vegas.

ON THE FLIGHT

Permission to nap. A jacket with a hood, a neck pillow, or noise-cancelling headphones will all help in this endeavor.

WHEN YOU ARRIVE

As they say, “When in Rome (or The Venetian)...” Start acting like you’re on Vegas time. Your sleep pregaming will pay off here.

Pay attention to your light. If it’s daytime, seek light. If it’s nighttime, seek darkness as much as possible. This will help your circadian rhythm do a hard restart.

Sweet Dreams and have fun in Vegas!

SLEEP TIPS Q&A WITH A SLEEP COACH

Q: What should I do if I was raging at 2 a.m. and the Starbucks line is too long in my hotel?

A: Fear not, you sleep-deprived soul. Starbucks has a Vegas empire and I’m sure there is a standalone store within walking distance. Mobile order that trash and get some sunshine and exercise in your day. No time for that? Go local(ish)! There are a number of coffee shops onsite at Market for that pleasant jolt of caffeine.

Q: It’s 3 p.m. on Monday and I AM SO TIRED.

A: Well, what do you know. That’s your circadian rhythm in action! There’s a natural lull in our energy around mid-afternoon. Throw in some late night parties and drinks and you have yourself some full-blown exhaustion. Skip the coffee and take a power nap instead. Might I suggest a fine Reverie mattress and base tuned to near-perfect zero gravity in our showroom (B-925) for your testing purposes.

Q: I don’t remember too much from last night’s dinner. I met 14 people and forgot all of their names.

A: Yeah...that’ll happen. I’m guessing there was some alcohol sloshing around in your liver last night too. While drinking helps us fall asleep faster, it creates a kind of “fake” sleep, and you miss out on all the neat and tidy sorting of the day's factoids (like remembering names) during this drunky sleep cycle. Might I suggest:

Frantically searching through LinkedIn

Trying a firm handshake, arm slap, and “Heyyyy buddy” upon meeting again

Try a few and see what elicits the most positive response. I recommend starting with some popular picks such as Bob, Greg, or Sara. Remember, confidence is key in both sales and fake-name-remembering.

Wishing you the sweetest of dreams,

-Rachel

Reverie Sleep Coach

P.S. Want more sleep tips or to talk 1:1 about YOUR sleep? Check out our Sleep Coaching program at www.reveriesleepcoach.com.